In a message dated 8/15/03 5:51:12 PM Pacific Daylight Time, steve@sburl.com writes:
> For that matter, anyone ever even HAD a major problem with
> axle breakage on Record hubs?
Yes, I have, and it is directly related to hitting bumps, bending the axle
slightly, putting the wheel back in the frame (resulting in a different
orientation) and subsequently bending it again. After a few times of that, the axle
would break at the root of a thread adjacent to the inner edge of the cone on
the drive side where there is a lot of overhang. The problem is more severe with
6 and seven speed dished wheels, less so with 5 speed spaced wheels.
I broke a lot of axles, my drop outs were always perfectly aligned, the hub
bearings properly adjusted. I was 180 lbs (then) and I should probably admit
that I regularly up-unweighted to the point of probably jumping obstacles at
high speed and riding down shallow stairs at the north end of the Golden Gate
Bridge, on 28 spoke Nisis Laser sew ups.
> I have always wondered why the vertical drops did not have raised faces for
> the axle. I have seen Japanese verticals with an extra layer spot-welded or
> brazed on to thicken the dropout. I thought builders stuck with horizontals
> because they were more tolerant of slight misalignment, at least in one
> direction, and they usually result in better chain wrap, as the dropout
> hanger is farther forward and usually closer to the freewheel.
>
>
Albert Eisentraut almost always brazed a washer to the face of Campagnolo
vertical drop outs, partly just to thicken them up so you wouldn't have to screw
your QR nut down forever if you were moving wheels back and forth between
bikes. You're right about the practical advantages of horizontal drops. If you
break a spoke with verticals, you can just about forget riding home.
Stevan Thomas
Alameda, CA